First Look: Bambi x Cath Kidston

London - Fashion and lifestyle brand Cath Kidston is rounding off a year of Disney collaborations, which have included celebrations for Mickey Mouse’s 90th anniversary and Snow White, with Bambi and his friends Thumper and Flower starring on limited-edition prints across fashion, bags, accessories, homeware and kids.

Launching on November 30 exclusively online and in selected stores, the playful collection references original illustrations from the classic 1942 Bambi animation, sourced by Cath Kidston’s in-house design team, who worked closely with Disney to celebrate both the rich design and illustration heritage of both brands.

A palette of soft blue-grey hues and warm stone creams has been paired with foliage and floral motifs to reference the forest across the four exclusive prints, which is perfectly showcased in the enchanting new floral ditsy print, Bambi Ditsy, showcasing Bambi, Thumper the rabbit and Flower the skunk.

The ditsy floral takes centre stage in the collection with the print blooming across homeware and accessories, with the soft peachy pink and blue-green palette featuring on mugs, plates, aprons, cosmetic bags, stationery, tea towels and tea sets.

The florals are complemented with the Bambi Snow Scene, which has been created especially for the collection featuring a brand-new placement design inspired by vintage film stills in which Bambi emerges from a snow-filled thicket that has been artworked with Cath Kidston’s classic Button Spot to create a whimsical new print.

The winter wonderland scene has been placed upon a tote bag, purse and cosmetic bag featuring a velvet trim, while the print has also been added to a sweater, cushion, a Christmas bauble and a snow globe charm.

Cath Kidston launches new Disney collection featuring Bambi and friends

For fashion lovers, there is the Bambi and Thumper placement print with rose detailing from Cath Kidston’s archive Trailing Rose print. These pieces allow the personality of the characters to shine through, with Bambi peeking out of the pocket of a corduroy Skirt, on the back of a cosy cardigan and skittering across the front of a cross body bag. Thumper also joins him across various fashion, accessories and homeware.

Cath Kidston’s trailing rose print continues on the Bambi Rose pieces, which marries stills from the original animation to create a cosy, wearable design on a soft blue ground, for a vintage feel. Highlights include the Bambi Rose bedding set, super soft PJs, dresses, leather bags and purses, as well as pretty collared dresses for kids and baby.

The Disney x Cath Kidston partnership was first announced in June 2016, with the first collaborative collection featuring Winnie-the-Pooh and his friends within Cath Kidston’s signature print designs - Button Spot and Bramley Sprig, a brand new print inspired by the home of the British bear, which launched to coincide with Winnie-the-Pooh’s 90th-anniversary celebrations in October 2016.

This was followed up by a sellout Mickey and Minnie Mouse collection, 101 Dalmatians pieces featuring Pongo, Perdita and their adorable puppies across five brand new Cath Kidston prints, and then the retailer headed to Neverland, with a collection dedicated to Peter Pan, his troupe of Lost Boys, the Darling children and Tinker Bell, and Mickey and friends returned with a collection in time for Christmas 2017.

Alice in Wonderland’s colour, imagination and humour marked the sixth limited edition collection in May 2018, which was a very floral affair, followed up in September with a range dedicated to Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs showcasing six special prints and a palette of rich charcoals and slate blues paired with a pop of red to reference the film’s dark undertones and the iconic poisonous apple.

The retailer then launched a playful collection of bags, accessories and homeware collection to celebrate Mickey Mouse’s 90th anniversary earlier this month, which coincided with Disney’s global celebrations that also included collaborations with numerous brands including Rag and Bone, Primark, Marc Jacobs, Clarks, Pandora, Shinola, Samsonite, Havaianas, Vans, Swatch, Opening Ceremony, Berksha, and Forever 21.

Established in 1993 with a single shop in London’s Holland Park, Cath Kidston is today a fast-growing global lifestyle brand with stores in countries including India, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Thailand, Qatar and the UK.

Images: courtesy of Cath Kidston